


Rain Will Make The Flowers Grow

by sakura_freefall



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Child Abuse, Cosette is a good friend, Fluff, Gen, Hopeful Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, It turns out okay though, Protective Siblings, Rated Teen for the abuse and alcohol abuse, Thenardier is a jerk, abuse tw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-08-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:27:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25889596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sakura_freefall/pseuds/sakura_freefall
Summary: Eponine's whole life is a game of chess, each move carefully calculated. Until one rainy night, when Eponine decides that she's done playing by the rules.
Relationships: Azelma Thénardier & Éponine Thénardier, Cosette Fauchelevent & Éponine Thénardier, Cosette Fauchevelent/Marius Pontmercy- Background, Marius Pontmercy & Éponine Thénardier, Éponine Thénardier & Gavroche Thénardier
Comments: 5
Kudos: 14





	Rain Will Make The Flowers Grow

**Author's Note:**

> I just want to note that there's mentions of physical abuse and alcoholism. If these are triggers for you, I'd recommend avoiding this work. 
> 
> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated, enjoy.

Eponine stumbled through the rain, pulling her old jacket around herself. She liked Paris at night, but not when the night was pouring buckets of water onto her face. She'd be soaked.

Oh, well. Better soaked than caught. Eponine subconsciously ran her hands down her skirt one more time, trying to brush off any crumbs that might have lingered. She had learned to cover her tracks, to take no chances in getting found out. As the familiar houses of her street- Rue Hugo- came into view, she steeled her nerves and turned the rusty knob.

The first thing she noticed when she entered was the sharp, dizzying smell of bad alcohol. Not a surprise, but she was hoping against hope that her father would hold off tonight, get stuck at work, anything. But it was Friday, of course. Fridays were the worst days, when her father- however much she hated to call that man her father- would get wasted at some bar with his friends (probably blowing most of the paycheck, too,) and come home to finish off the rest.

 _Thank goodness,_ Eponine thought to herself. _He's still passed out on the couch._ Hopefully, she could creep upstairs without waking him...

Eponine tiptoed up the staircase, avoiding cans and food wrappers- leftovers from her dad's little party, no doubt- and shut the door into her room, directly across from Azelma and Gavroche's. No doubt they remembered Friday Rules. Don't close the door, don't make noise, and don't attract attention.

Eponine had her own set of Friday Rules. As the oldest of the three, she tended to bear the brunt of whatever rage Thenardier had stored up in his drunken self. _Look down,_ she reminded herself, running it on repeat through her head. _Don't look him in the eye. Look down. Look down. There's two more years to go._

Eighteen. If she could just hold out until eighteen, she would be free. Maybe she could take Azelma and Gavroche with her, too. She wouldn't be bound to Thenardier anymore. She could move into her own place, or stay with Cosette until she got enough money to rent. Eighteen would be the year her life really started. The year she could start living without being afraid.

Two more years in this prison. She quietly unpacked her bag, leaving her coat sprawled across her bed. Taking a deep breath, she flicked on her desk lamp- the other lights were spotty at best, and she knew better than to think her parents would replace the blown fuses. She absentmindedly flipped through her history book as she reviewed her notes- from the June Rebellion of 1832 or something equally antiquated, she didn't really pay attention to it. The information went in and out, not bothering to take root. It couldn't be blamed, really, because her mind was focused more on getting herself food than learning about hundreds of yIears ago.

The night wore on, and so did the rain. She thought she could hear nine-year-old Gavroche and twelve-year-old Azelma whispering from across the hall. They really should be more careful, but Eponine couldn't expect them to know, especially not Gavroche. They were so young.

She thought back to when she was nine years old- probably the last year before it all fell apart. Back before their dad got two years of prison for breaking into someone's house, when their mom decided that she couldn't be bothered looking after three children, back when she was their little princess, and she didn't know about all the dirty dealings they did behind her back. But by the time Thenardier had gotten out of jail, she was almost thirteen, and she had taken over as the leader in the family. Her dad had developed a drinking problem during his year in parole, and it had gotten out of hand. 

"AZELMA!" That sound jolted Eponine down to her soul. She was used to Thenardier's yell being directed towards her, but she made sure that Azelma did nothing to incriminate herself, nor Gavroche. She peeked out the slit of her door to have her fear confirmed- her father, slouching drunkenly, shouting half-nonsense at a cowering Gavroche and shaking Azelma. 

"Papa, please, I swear, it was just one!" she cried, and the sound broke Eponine's heart.

" _What do I say about bringing home other people's food, Azelma?"_

"No... Papa, I'm sorry, it was just-"

"WHAT DO I SAY?"

"Dad, it was only a candy bar!"

"DON'T TALK BACK!" Eponine knew it was only a matter of time before her dad snapped, and broke something, or worse, hurt Azelma or Gav. Every instinct told her not to do it, every muscle saying to hide, to pretend to be asleep, but her body acted before the thought about it.

"Dad, no, it was mine, I gave it to her. Don't blame her, it was my fault."

"Oh yeah, I'm not surprised," he sneered. "Gonna set a bad example. Gonna have the cops on our trail."

"Dad," she said, crossing her arms, hoping that her siblings would take the hint and hide. "Get. Away. From. Me."

"You talk back to me? _You talk back to_ _me?_ " he said, raising his fist, in which was clasped a half-empty glass bottle.

"Dad, stop! Leave me alone!" She knew what was coming now. She knew she'd pushed him. But at least he had forgotten about Azelma.

Thenardier let out a yell of anger, hurling the bottle across the room, straight into Eponine's face. In spite of herself, she whimpered. She brushed the edge of her eyebrow, and felt blood.

"Stay here," he said, growling under his breath. "Stay here and don't you _dare_ move." Eponine nodded mutely. He was probably going to come back with more projectiles. But he couldn't hit what wasn't there.

\------------------------------------------------------

"Come on," she whispered to her siblings, as soon as Thenardier was out of earshot. "Get your bookbags. We're going." Gavroche opened his mouth to ask something, but Eponine shoved her hand over his face. "No questions, just go."

Wide-eyed and pale, the two followed her. She zipped up her coat, hefted her backpack onto her shoulders, and opened the window.

"We're going to climb down?" asked Gavroche, trying and failing to hide his fear.

"No, we can use the tree," Eponine whispered. "Quick, before he comes back." She swung herself onto the nearby branch, and slowly climbed her way down. Gavroche followed her, slipping a little on the way down but unhurt.

"I'm scared, Ep," whimpered Azelma. She was clinging to the branch, shaking, her eyes wide in the darkness.

"No, don't, you'll be okay. See, I'll catch you." It wasn't ideal, but it was better than having her fall trying to get down. The rain soaked her hair, making her shiver. It was now or never.

"Don't think. Just jump." Eponine saw a blur of muted color, and felt a weight hit her arms, and she groaned. Azelma sniffled, holding her wrist and shaking from head to toe.

"Azelma, are you okay?" she whispered. "Because we need to go." Azelma nodded resolutely, although there were still tears in her eyes.

Eponine led them through the street until they were in an abandoned alleyway. "Hey. Hey, guys. Look at me. We'll be all right." 

"Where are we going, Ponine?" whispered Gavroche. "Do we have to go back home?"

"No, Gavroche. We're _never_ going back there. Never. I'm taking you to Cosette's place. She's my friend, and she had a nice Papa who will take care of us, okay? We'll figure it out."

"'kay, Ponine," he said. "I'll be okay."

She lead them through streets and sidewalks, the rain pouring down in torrents, until she came upon the house labeled _55 Rue Plumet_. She took a deep breath. Cosette wouldn't turn her away, would she? No. She couldn't.

Eponine knocked on the door.

Cosette opened it. Eponine could hear the music from the television coming in. A warm glow. A home. Something Eponine hadn't had in years.

"Ep? What are you doing here?"

"I think I'd better come inside."

\------------------------------------

Cosette didn't ask questions until they were safely inside and out of the storm, and set a pot of canned soup on the stove. The angel. It was rare to find a friend like Cosette. 

"'Sette?" came a familiar voice. Marius Pontmercy, Eponine's childhood friend and former crush, as well as Cosette's boyfriend, fumbled his way from the sofa. There was a time when Eponine would've been embarrassed to have Marius see her like this, but now she was just glad for a friendly face."

"Eponine? Azelma? Gavroche?" Marius asked, his trademark expression of confusion evident on his face. "What are you guys doing here? Wait a minute, Ponine, what's that on your face?" Marius brushed his finger across her forehead."

"My cat."

"Eponine, you don't have a cat," Cosette said. "You can trust me. Was it your dad?"

"Yeah." Eponine tried to keep her voice steady, but the word came out as a squeak.

"Get me the phone, Cosette," Marius breathed. "I'm calling the police."

"No, Marius, don't-" Eponine protested.

"It's okay, Eponine," Cosette soothed. "He can't get to you. We won't let him." Marius dialed the number before stepping into the other room. "Have some soup."

Eponine shoveled the steaming soup into her mouth, barely able to remember the last time she'd had something this good. Gavroche and Azelma warily did the same with their bowls. Cosette didn't try to talk, just squeezed Eponine's hand encouragingly. "My papa will be home soon. He'll help you."

"Cosette? Eponine?" Marius called from the other room. "Inspector Javert says he'll be at Rue Hugo shortly. He'll need us to talk to him in the morning."

"Is that okay, Eponine?" Cosette asked, eyes drawn up in worry. 

"Yeah. Yeah, it's fine."

"You can stay with us tonight," she said, kindness in her blue eyes. "We'll figure out to do when tomorrow comes."

\-----------------------------------------------

TWO YEARS LATER:

Eponine smiled as she shut the alarm clock off, pulling herself out of bed. She started her new job today, working at a little coffee shop called Café Musain, where her friend Musichetta had pulled some favours for her. The pay would be more than her last job had, and she could treat herself a little more once she didn't have to worry about the rent. Azelma, now fourteen, and Gavroche, now eleven, were placed in a foster home nearby. 

She put a few slices of bread in the toaster, and opened a container of jam. Her flat was small but adequate, and it wasn't too expensive. Her phone pinged with text messages from her friends, most of them coming from Cosette, who she owed everything to.

**Cosette:** _Hey Ep!! Ready for your new job??_

**Ponine:** _Yeah. Should be good. Movie at your place?_

**Cosette:** _Sure!! Bring the kids if u want!_

Eponine dashed off a quick reply before pocketing her phone and pulling on her new coat. Brushing back her hair, she closed the door and walked the few blocks to the Metro. The day was sunny and warm, and a light breeze ruffled the autumn foliage. Smiling to herself, and with the whole world ahead of her, she realized that this was her tomorrow, far removed from that rainy night so long ago.

It had been hard, but she had gotten through it. And after all, rain will make the flowers grow.

_**~Fin~** _


End file.
